User Interface

The Flying Popcorn user interface consists of the canvas, where you add objects and create your project visually, as well as several panels, toolbars and the menu bar. The majority of the interface is taken up by the canvas, as it is where most of the visual editing is done. The main menu gives you access to almost all of Flying Popcorn's features, while the toolbars are designed to give you convenient access to the most commonly used features. The panels assist you in navigating and editing your projects. A more detailed explanation of each component is listed below.

The Main Menu

The main menu contains all of the commands needed to create a project. In this help file, when you see phrases like "In the File menu" or "In the Page menu," we are referring to this menu. All of its commands are discussed throughout this document.

The Standard Toolbar

The Standard toolbar is a convenient collection of icons for often-used commands. These include cutting, copying, pasting, hiding, showing, and locking objects. With all toolbars, if you hold the mouse cursor over an icon, a tooltip message will appear, telling you the name of the icon.

The Align Toolbar

The Align toolbar contains icons for commands that align, space, and resize objects evenly. For more information, see Aligning objects and Resizing objects.

The Publishing Toolbar

The Publishing toolbar contains commands for publishing your projects on the web, as a screen saver, or as a stand-alone executable file called an AutoRun. It also contains a play button. For more information, see Playing and publishing projects.

The Object Icons

This contains icons for each of the 6 different objects available in Flying Popcorn as well as icons for backgrounds and animations. Click on an icon to open the Object Properties window and create your objects. For more information on each type of object, see Types of objects.

The Page List

The Page List panel provides a convenient way to navigate through pages and create new pages. Simply click on a page to open it on the canvas, or click the New Page icon to create a new page. There is also a Template tab so that you can browse and select pre-made page templates.

The Object Template Panel

The Object Template Panel is provided for your convenience so that you have easy access to a selection of pre-made objects. It has five tabs: Text, Image, Figure, Media, and Background. Click on the tab to see the available templates for the type of object you want. Then, simply click and drag a template onto the canvas to add it to your project. For more information, see Using the Object Template Panel.

The Properties Panel

The Properties panel contains a list of an object's properties including its position, size, name, group number, etc. Click on an entry in the right column to edit it. You can also select In and Out effects for an object. For more information on In and Out effects, see Adding In-Out effects to objects.

The Project Panel

The project panel contains a list of all the pages in your project. Click on the small plus sign next to a page icon, and it will open a list of all the objects on the page, if there are any. The Project panel is a good way to get an overview of your project. It is especially helpful in that it lists and gives you access to objects that may be hidden or obscured. Click on a page to open the page, and click on an object to select it.